Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20: a golden make over for a legendary gaming mouse
This golden wireless gaming mouse will help you win gold in multiplayer matches
🏆 Review score: 4/5
🏅 Editor’s Choice Award
✅ Pros
✨ Stunning mix of gold, transparent plastic, and RGB that melds together
🎯 65K sensor captures micromovements for competitive FPS shooters
🖱️ 100m click lifespan and Corning Gorilla Glass mouse feet will stand the test of time
⚙️ Gear Link configuration website saves you from having to download software
❌ Cons
🤑 $259 is a lot for a gaming mouse
💦 Potentially too slick to hold for gamers with sweaty hands
⚖️ 8K polling rate reduces max DPI to 50K and battery life to 37 hours
🪶 82g is a little heavy for the ultra-lightweight mouse category
The Shortcut Review
The Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 is a remix of the brand’s celebrated ultra-lightweight gaming mouse. It’s been given a transparent shell, 24K gold plating, and a ridiculously sensitive 65K sensor for competitive play, but all of this comes at the high price of $259. I’ll be honest, the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 won me on aesthetics alone. The mix of the smoky transparent shell, shiny gold within, RGB, and futuristic decals just hits the cyberpunk aesthetic I love. The fact that it has a fantastic hand shape, long-lasting microswitch mouse buttons, Corning Gorilla Glass mouse feet, and uses the Gear Link website to configure settings instead of downloading software is just icing on this great gaming mouse.
The Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 falters in a few ways. The slick design can be a detriment, as its transparent surface is entirely smooth and can slip out of a sweaty hand, especially for gamers with a claw or fingertip grip. You also can’t use this mouse at its maximum 8K polling rate without two trade-offs: a lower maximum DPI of 50K and reduced battery life to 37 hours. This 82-gram mouse also isn’t the lightest of ultra-lightweight clickers if that’s your main priority.
The real reason to buy the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 is its aesthetics and longevity. Its mouse switches and Corning glass skates won’t quit on you for years, and you’ll have the bragging rights of owning a gold-plated gaming mouse for all that time too.
Full Review
✨ 24K gold-plated. The Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 leaves a hell of an impression, combining a smoky transparent shell, a 24K gold-plated inner frame, more gold on the scroll wheel and side buttons, and RGB lighting. This gaming mouse is also decked out with decals celebrating ROG’s 20th anniversary, giving it an even more cyber-edged feel. That might all sound like too many clashing aesthetics at once, but it coalesces into a “Cyberpunk 2077 but cleaner” sort of style. It’s gorgeous.
⚠️ Slippery when wet. This is one slick-looking mouse, but it can also get a little too slick if you have sweaty palms. The entire transparent shell is smooth, and while this wasn’t an issue for my palm grip, those with a claw or fingertip grip might have trouble keeping a hold of the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20. Asus includes a few strips of grip tape, but this ends up covering the whole point of a transparent mouse. I wish Asus had micro-etched the surface for added grip, since it has the technology to emboss ROG and Xbox logos all over the equally transparent Asus ROG Xbox Ally X20.
🖱️ 100,000,000 clicks ready. The Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 wasn’t just built pretty; it was designed to last. The ROG Optical Micro switches under each mouse button are rated for a 100 million click lifespan that’s sure to last for years, even if your StarCraft 2 APM rate is in the 400+ range. The mouse’s feet/skates are also made of Corning Gorilla Glass, which will basically never need to be replaced, unlike the silicone pads used by most other mice.
☄️ 65,000 DPI sensor. This mouse features a 65,000 DPI sensor that’s quite a bit faster than the already-sensitive 42,000 DPI sensor on the previous Asus ROG Harpe II Ace. At a maximum of 65K DPI, the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 can track even the slightest mouse movements, which is essential in shooters like Counter-Strike 2 and Valorant.
This mouse is designed to read the smallest movements. For example, the lift-off distance can be adjusted to be as small as 0.7-1.7mm. If you’re mouse aiming with your whole arm (as you should be), the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 also supports a maximum acceleration of 70g and a maximum speed of 800 inches per second (IPS).
⚡ 8,000Hz polling at a cost. If you want the best lag-free connection for competitive gaming, you’ll want to plug in the SpeedNova 8K dongle. It unlocks the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 8K polling rate; however, it comes at a fairly high cost: reducing the max DPI to 50,000 and shortening battery life to just 37 hours. That might still sound like a lot of time to game, but this mouse’s regular battery life reaches 195 hours at a 1K polling rate.
🖥️ No install needed. Unlike so many peripherals, there’s no software installation required with the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20. You can simply load the Gear Link website, connect your mouse, and then you’re free to tweak all the settings without downloading a thing.
You can go in deep to tweak the ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20 to your exact liking with angle tuning and snapping, DPI adjustments, including separate X and Y axes, and debounce delay. You can also calibrate the mouse’s sensor to your desk surface or pick one of the presets if you own an Asus ROG mousepad. Lastly, there’s a Zone Mode toggle that locks the mouse to its highest settings, saving you the hassle of jumping into the app to turn everything up manually.
Up next: Asus ROG Azoth Extreme Edition 20 review: the most expensive gaming keyboard I’ve ever loved
Kevin Lee is The Shortcut’s Creative Director. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam